Death & Taxes !

Well, we all know no plan survives contact with the enemy...and neither did mine. After compiling a list of the units I wanted, complete with uniforms, flags, grenadier info and the suppliers I intended to buy from I settled down to wait until the new year before kicking it off with an order to the suppliers.

At least that was the plan...!

The taxman paid a visit, just before Xmas, the bu**er, and lets just say that my grandiose plans are scuppered. Bad news!

However with every cloud comes a silver lining.

I've been gaming quite a but lately with some the chaps in the Oldmeldrum Wargames Group and we got talking about my SYW project. Another side discussion about Austrian Casquets and when they were introduced also took place and between the two my mind made a salmon like mental leap!

The Casquet was brought in after 1767 and both I and another club member have revolutionary period Austrians. Another has Prussians for the SYW, whose uniform didn't change until Frederick the Greats death. Why not therefore bring my project forward a few years and set it in the time of the War of Bavarian Succession - the Potato War of 1778-79. As this war really didn't feature much fighting and we had the figures for both sides already , I could scale back my concept and paint up an imagi-nation force for the 18thC.

The Archbishopric of Hoegaarden and the Hops War of 1778 was born.

The army of Hoegaarden would be fairly small. No more than a handful of foot and horse and a small artillery contingent, it would be supplemented by jaeger and militia and would thus allow me to play skirmish games and larger battles. (John Ray's book providing yet more inspiration!)

Archbishopric of Hoegaarden, c1778

Foot;

Blau Rgt (2btn - ea. battalion of 4 stands plus a grenadier stand and a battalion gun)

Gelb Rgt (2btn) Jägerkorps zu fuss (2btn)

Combined Grenadier Battalion (4 stands - 1ea from Blau and Gelb)

Militia zu Hoegaarden - (8 coys) Garrison Rgt -  (4 coys)

Horse;

Celis Hussar Rgt (4sqd)

Julius Dragoon Rgt (4sqd)

Jägerkorps zu pferde (4sqd)

 

Artillery

Battery zu fuss (6x 6lb)

Jägerkorps Amusette Battery (var.)

 

The infantry will be in either white or blue with dark blue and yellow facings.  Grenadiers will be Prussian style. The Jägerkorps will be the figs I bought from Charles Grant. The militia are figures from Eagle. Lastly the garrison troops are a whimsy - but the Perry hessian garrison figs are lovely!

The cavalry will be blue and white for the hussars and white for the dragoons. I can use my 1790s French plastic Perry Hussars and Trent Austrian cavalry for these initially. I might change the hussars out later for Lazuns legion Hussar figures. The mounted jäger will be Mr Grant's troops again.

2 hessian guns will form the battery with some amusettes (like jingols!) to support the jäger who will be able to fight in skirmish games too. The battalion guns will be added later, perhaps!

Not a huge army, but 6 units of foot, 2 horse and 1 artillery to start with is quite neat and can be bolstered with the Militia, Garrison, Austrians or Prussians to make a bigger game when needed. Best of all it's only 5 foot and some guns and command to paint. Very do-able!